If the first hour was anything but the classic everyone expected, the last 30 minutes of the Jamaican Premier League final between last year's champions Montego Bay United and Arnett Gardens certainly delivered a six-pack of drama and excitement.

Two goals, two red cards, one dishearted mascot, a slap to the face here, a few near misses there, and a whole lot of joy for the folks in red and black. Arnett Gardens claimed their first championship since 2002 in beating United 2-0 in front of 20,000...

In three games, Arnett Gardens have only managed to score one goal against defending Jamaican Premier League champions Montego Bay United.

In fact, after a 5 - 0 loss during the opening stages of the season followed by 0-0 and 1-1 ties, the Arnett Gardens faithful could have been excused for being a little restless heading into Monday evening's mouthwatering 8:30 p.m. final inside the National Stadium.

In 2002, Kelly Clarkson became the first American idol, Brazil won the World Cup, Men in Black II was a thing and Arnett Gardens won their last Jamaican national league title, while Marvin Morgan was just about to hit puberty.

Now a grown man and the key figure in Arnett Gardens' midfield, it was Morgan who provided the winner -- albeit somewhat fortuitously -- as the club moved one step closer to ending their 12 year wait by beating Humble Lions 3-2 in the Red Stripe Premier League second leg semifinal...

The message is loud and clear. Montego Bay United are set on retaining their Red Stripe Premier League title.

It's a message that was sent in no uncertain terms on Sunday as the defending champions stayed on course for a repeat by booking their spot in this year's championship game with an incredible 5-1 win over Kingston-based team Waterhouse.

Waterhouse's players must have felt like they were in a bad dream; better yet, a nightmare, one they have suffered through before.

Playing Montego Bay United on home turf is tantamount to trying to storm a castle; it might as well have been named Fort Montego Bay.

The team from Jamaica's North Coast, a haven for tourists from all over the globe, has been far less welcoming to visiting teams to the second city. Coached by Dr. Dean Weatherly, they boast one of the best home records having lost only two games in front of their own fans all season.

Things get even worse for Sunday's visitors, Waterhouse -- they were humiliated...